The inner ramblings of some wierdo on the internet.

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One thing can lead to another

Another difficulty I find with posting (see my previous hand-wringing) is again to do with the way my brain works. It’s not a lack of topics—I have a list of things I’d like to write about—but being able to confine a topic to something reasonably defined that doesn’t end up being thousands of words long.

If any of you are familiar with the Myers-Briggs personality types, I’m an “N” (for iNtuition), which means I tend to process information by looking for patterns and generalised concepts. This approach is very good for drawing associations and parallels between disparate ideas. In other words, I may start trying to write a brief post about recognising the efforts of those who work behind the scenes and have to work very hard to avoid going (too far) off on tangents about intrinsic human value, the flaws of 21st-century capitalist economics, ideal class sizes, subconscious assumptions, sexism in sports coverage, and so on*.

Of course, another side of the problem is attempting to make sure that you (the reader) are able to follow what I’m writing. It’s okay to segue from one topic to another, as long everyone understands the transition. This is a lot easier to do when conversing face-to-face, as you can immediately see if you’ve lost your audience. Similarly, it’s important to remember that other people are not necessarily as familiar with a particular topic as I am, so I try to provide explanations, or links to more information.

By all means, call out if you feel I’m failing at any of these. If I’ve confused you, chances are I’ve confused everyone else too, and I need to explain something better. I’m willing to make the effort, as one of the main points of this blog is to help get my rambling thoughts into some semblance of order.

* Case in point, I could waffle at length about the Myers-Briggs test, whether it’s “accurate” or not and whether it’s useful regardless, and some of the nuances of the different types. But I won’t**. I’m sure you’re very glad. 🙂